A stuffy nose during a cold for some reason worries parents much more than it does, but outside of childhood illness. The fact that the baby breathes through his mouth in ordinary life is not always paid attention to. But in vain!
«This is a very common problem. And it is important to pay attention to it. The child’s normal breathing should be through the nose. This is the only way he gets enough oxygen, and the air entering the respiratory tract is heated and disinfected.»
What is this fraught with?
«A child who does not breathe through his nose, partially or completely breathes through his mouth, will get sick more often, catch respiratory infections more often,» our expert explains. — All because he receives air in an unprepared, uninfected form.»
This is one of the possible consequences. Another is a violation of the formation of the facial skeleton: the lower jaw is pushed forward, changes in the muscular system. Such a facial structure is usually called «adenoid», although not always the reason lies in them.
The third in turn (but not in importance) consequence is the problems of the baby’s development. This may be due to a lack of oxygen — the child gets tired faster, learns new knowledge worse, it is difficult for him to learn. It may also be due to hearing disorders caused by insufficient air intake into the auditory tubes. And he enters it during nasal breathing, because they connect the nose to the ear.
«If the auditory tubes are involved, the child will hear poorly, perceive speech poorly and speak the way he hears,» says the doctor — The correct development of speech will be disrupted.»
If you notice that the child is not breathing well through the nose or breathing through the mouth, you should first contact a pediatrician or ENT doctor. Further, if necessary, you can be sent to an allergist, dentist, orthodontist and even to a neurologist and somnologist. Treatment, depending on the cause, can be conservative or surgical.
Why is this happening?
There are several reasons for nasal breathing difficulties. The simplest and most easily removable is dry air at home. The nose dries out, crusts form in it, which block the access of air and the baby begins to breathe through his mouth. This problem is easily solved with a humidifier.
Other situations are more serious. Thus, oral respiration may be associated with pathologies of the nose and nasopharynx. The first include edematous forms of rhinitis: allergic (it occurs quite often) or vasomotor (not related to allergies or infection). To the second — adenoids, hated by many mothers, or, as they are also called, adenoid vegetations.
«It turns out to be a vicious circle: the child does not breathe well through his nose, the adenoid tissue does not receive oxygen, grows faster, the adenoids increase and make breathing even more difficult.»
A common problem in the youngest children is a foreign body in the nose. A bead, a tiny detail of the designer — it’s so interesting to push it into the nostril. Moreover, parents, if the baby does not admit it himself, may not notice this for a very long time, until the moment when the nose stops breathing normally and secretions appear from it.
Another reason, often depending on the inattention of adults, is a curved nasal septum. Yes, it may be a birth defect or birth trauma. But for many, it is the result of a banal fall or a blow to the nose.
«Sometimes we don’t even notice it, we don’t pay attention — well, I fell, bumped my nose, picked it up, told me to be careful,» says our expert. — And the cartilage is twisted, it breaks down like a green twig and then it grows and develops incorrectly.»
From other reasons — enlarged palatine tonsils, they are also tonsils. If they have grown, they can interfere with breathing through the nose, especially in sleep. As well as malocclusion, problems with the temporal — mandibular joints. With such problems, they usually start with an ENT doctor, and end up with a dentist or orthodontist.
Only without amateur activity!
Our expert warns that self—medication is fraught with serious consequences for children’s health.
«For example, you don’t need to warm up your nose,— says the doctor. — This is an old technique: our grandmothers warmed their noses with bags of salt, boiled eggs. But if there is active inflammation, then by warming it up we will only aggravate it and create a kind of thermostat for microbes, where they will feel great.»
In addition, it is not necessary to mock children by instilling onion juice, aloe, kalanchoe and other concentrated liquids into their nose. At best, it will not help, at worst, there will be a burn of the mucous membrane.
Consequences of self-medication
Deterioration of breathing, as well as complications from the sinuses of the nose. Children have a short and wide auditory tube, so problems in the nose very quickly pass to the middle ear, children have otitis media. Not to mention the fact that in this way you can not notice sluggish sinusitis and lead to complications on the eyes and intracranial.
And one more, perhaps the most unexpected advice: it is not necessary, if it seems to you that the child’s nose is not breathing, immediately pour vasoconstrictive drops there. Firstly, they are addictive, and secondly, all such drops have a two-phase effect: at the first stage, the swelling is removed, but then it increases again.
«This is only such a rescue option — the child has a very stuffy nose, to ease his condition a little,» the expert summarizes. — And then you need to use those drops that the doctor prescribes, vasoconstrictors alone cannot cope with the problem here.»
